Collecting and Using Information for Nutrition

Improving the collection and use of information is a priority for SPRING. Data from a variety of sectors (agriculture, finance, education, health, etc.) play an important role in improving nutritional outcomes for women and children. To achieve our goal, we gather evidence on the best ways to fill data gaps, develop new tools and guidance, and seek consensus on best practices.

Major SPRING activities in this area include—

The information that results from these activities helps program managers, policymakers, and international organizations better understand nutrition needs, make more informed decisions, plan more effectively, and advocate for improved nutrition funding.

What and how information is communicated affects actions at all levels related to food availability, care practices, health services, and the sociocultural environment. Changes in policies, financing, and information or monitoring systems, for example, will do little good if they are not communicated from national to community to household levels. Similarly, the information that is or is not communicated with regard to the cost of agricultural inputs and food, available health services, priority nutrition practices, and prevalence of malnutrition, for example, can affect what food is grown, stored, and/or purchased, if health services are utilized, how children are fed, or which nutrition programs are funded.

News

Close up image of people's hands preparing greens.
May 2018
As part of a continued effort to increase the reach of SPRING’s nutrition financing and budget analysis resources, SPRING conducted a workshop in Washington, DC on the 2018 nutrition budget analysis...
Large group photo of the meeting attendees.
Feb 2018
In collaboration with UNICEF and the Nigeria Federal Ministry of Health, SPRING carried out an evaluation of the Community Infant and Young Child Feeding (C-IYCF) Counselling Package in Nigeria. In ...
A graphic representation of a woman cleaning a yard of animal feces, disposing of the feces responsibly, and washing her hands with a tippy tap.
Jan 2018
SPRING co-facilitated a session on implementation science with GAIN and the Society for Implementation Science in Nutrition at GWU’s Global Health MiniU in September 2017.